Snake charmers in Pakistan- called jogis- keep the tradition alive

Pakistan: In Pakistan, there is a tribe of snake charmers who call themselves Jogis. Their lifestyles can be seen as bizarre to some of us but to them it is more than a just way of surviving.

Misri Jogi, the chieftain of the tribe cites that his men travel across the province and make their earning by providing cheap entertainment to the children and the elders. According to him, while all snakes are valuable, the Cobra has always been regarded as a sacred being. In their tribe, Jogi jokingly says, that they don’t love their wives as much as they love their Cobra. On the other hand, it is actually true that the snake is treated like a child of the family. They consider it as their friend and their companion. They even take the snake with them to their bed during the months of winter, to keep it warm.

The training that is provided to the children to become a successful snake charmer starts from the birth itself. A child of five or six months is given a taste of a Cobra poison.

One aspect of it is that the Cobra produces a talisman called Mannka, in the local language, which protects them from snake bites. The talisman sucks the poison from the blood while swelling in the process and then the person transfers the poison into a cotton ball.

Though the increasing provision, for formal education and stable jobs, is making many of the present generation to lose interest in their ancestral profession.

Misri Jogi, despite the transitions still hopes that the present youth will continue the traditions of the tribe well into the future.

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan Tuesday vowed to hold peace talks with arch-rival India following elections in the neighbouring country, after a similar offer from the former cricketer was “rebuffed.”

Khan made the announcement during a speech at a Saudi Arabian investment conference where the newly minted leader launched a charm offensive targeting potential investors as Pakistan seeks to secure funds amid a yawning balance of payment crisis.

“When I won the elections and came to power the first thing I tried to do was extend a hand of peace to India,” Khan told the crowd at the Future Investment Initiative (FII) in Riyadh, saying the overture was later “rebuffed” by Delhi.

“Now what we are hoping is that we wait until the elections then again we will resume our peace talks with India,” he added, referring to upcoming nationwide polls scheduled to take place by mid-May.

Imran Khan, wikimedia commons

In September India pulled the plug on a rare meeting between its foreign minister and her Pakistani counterpart on the sidelines of a UN summit — a move that was termed “arrogant” by Khan and unleashed a barrage of insults from both sides.

India has long accused Pakistan of backing militants in Kashmir, a Himalayan territory divided between the two countries but claimed in full by both since independence in 1947.

Delhi has stationed about 500,000 soldiers in the portion of Kashmir it controls, where separatist groups demand independence or a merger with Pakistan.

Khan’s call for peace talks comes as his administration is desperately seeking funds from “friendly” countries, including Saudi Arabia, to shore up Pakistan’s deteriorating finances.

The prime minister’s attendance at the FII comes as leading policy-makers and corporate chiefs shunned the conference in response to the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

During his address at the FII Khan confirmed that Pakistan was also in talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) over a new bailout.

Since taking power in August Khan has also sought loans from allies such as China and Saudi Arabia, promised to recover funds stolen by corrupt officials, and embarked on a series of high-profile populist austerity measures.

But help has been in short supply and economists’ warnings have grown increasingly urgent. (VOA)